Regardless of what financial bracket you fall into, it’s safe to say that everyone has been affected by the recession. Families are scaling back, companies are forced to lay off employees and people everywhere are rethinking how they spend money. However, trying times always offer valuable perspective—we must be thankful for what we do have and consider those who are struggling to provide basic needs for their families.

According to the United Nations, there are approximately 100 million homeless people in the world and millions more living in inadequate, unsanitary conditions, often without running water or electricity. The United Nations has designated the first Monday in October as annual World Habitat Day. On Monday Oct. 5, Habitat for Humanity asks everyone to join in observance of World Habitat Day and support decent, affordable housing for all. Main events such as lectures, workshops, volunteer appreciation, potlucks and recruitment will be occurring in Washington D.C., but check your local chapter of Habitat for Humanity to find events in your community.

Photo Mosaic by Habitat for Humanity. Photo Courtesy of Habitat for Humanity

U.S. Housing Facts

• About 95 million people, one third of the nation, have housing problems including a high-cost burden, overcrowding, poor quality shelter and homelessness. (National Low Income Housing Coalition: 2004)

• One in three American households spend more than 30 percent of income on housing, and one in seven spends more than 50 percent. (Joint Center for Housing Studies: 2006)

• The number of low-income families that lack safe and affordable housing is related to the number of children that suffer from asthma, viral infections, anemia, stunted growth and other health problems. About 21,000 children have stunted growth attributable to the lack of stable housing; 10,000 children between the ages of 4 and 9 are hospitalized for asthma attacks each year because of cockroach infestation at home; and more than 180 children die each year in house fires attributable to faulty electrical heating and electrical equipment. (Sandel, et al: 1999)

Global poverty facts

• By the year 2030, an additional 3 billion people, about 40 percent of the world’s population, will need access to housing. This translates into a demand for 96,150 new affordable units every day and 4,000 every hour. (UN-HABITAT: 2005)

• One out of every three city dwellers – nearly a billion people – lives in a slum. (Slum indicators include: lack of water, lack of sanitation, overcrowding, non-durable structures and insecure tenure.) (UN-HABITAT: 2006)

• UN-Habitat has reported that because of poor living conditions, women living in slums are more likely to contract HIV/AIDS than their rural counterparts, and children in slums are more likely to die from water-borne and respiratory illness. (UN-HABITAT: 2006)

Get Involved

Ask Congress to pass legislation that would make safe, affrodable housing a priority.

Make a donation to Habitat for Humanity.

To learn more about World Habitat Day Events visit www.habitat.org/gov/take_action/world_habitat_day_events_2009.

Marlon Brando has made another offer you can’t refuse. The late film legend’s plans to build an environmental resort in French Polynesia are finally underway.

The Brando—located on the atoll Tetiaroa, 35 miles north of Tahiti—has passed rigorous environmental building regulations set by the Tahitian government. Construction of The Brando began with the building of a platform to protect the sensitive coral reef.

The resort features 47 bungalows—each with a private pool—a spa and fitness center, and activities and attractions that include archaeological tours and scuba diving.

Tetiaroa atoll, site of The Brando. Photo: www.thebrando.com

Brando acquired Tetiaroa in 1965 with the vision of developing the sustainable resort; his friend, Richard Bailey—who owns several luxury resorts in French Polynesia that utilize eco-friendly practices—is taking charge of the current project. Sustainable highlights include “SeaWater Air-Conditioning” (SWAC), in which cold ocean water is pumped through a deep-sea pipe into the hotel to chill the air; electricity costs using this method are about one-tenth that of conventional air-conditioning systems.

Completion of The Brando is slated for late 2011. For more information, go to www.thebrando.com.

Photo: cogdogblog

If you’re trying to shrink the carbon footprint of your summer vacation plans this year, you’ve probably run headlong into a number of tricky transportation issues. Drive or fly? Bus or train? Economy or first class? It’s enough to make a person want to take a trip to the nearest coal-fired power plant. Alone. In a Chinese-made Hummer.

Or you could download the new “Getting There Greener” guide released by the nonprofit Union of Concerned Scientists, which tackles many of the questions plaguing would-be ethical travelers. You can even download a handy spreadsheet that ranks various transportation choices from best to worst, depending on how many travelers are going and how far a distance they plan to cover.

To get you started, here are five tips for greener travel:

1. Go Direct: Detours and stopovers use a lot of extra energy, so plan shorter, more direct routes.

2. Stay Out of the Hot Seat: Flying economy averages half the carbon footprint of a seat in first or business class.

3. Fly Solo: For single travelers and couples, a nonstop coach flight will usually burn less carbon than driving.

4. Bus is Best: Travel by bus or motor coach is almost always greener than either driving (even a hybrid) or flying.

5. Get a Trade-in: If the vehicle you own is a carbon hog, try renting a more efficient one for your journey.

What have you done to make your travel more green? Reply in our comments section, and take our travel poll.

Shannon Wentworth is throwing down the gauntlet on ecotourism. As CEO of Sweet, a new lesbian eco-travel company, Wentworth is out to prove how easy it is to travel green and run an eco-friendly business.

Based in Emeryville, Calif., Sweet offers cruise vacations and adventure trips to lesbian travelers—with an eco-twist: Environmental and cultural service projects are intertwined in every travel package.

Shannon Wentworth, CEO of Sweet.

Photo courtesy of Sweet

Eco-Biz

For Wentworth, incorporating eco-conscious travel was a no-brainer. “Why wouldn’t we do that?” she said. Partnering with CarbonFund.org (which helps calculate clients’ energy emissions and sells renewable energy credits), Sweet has offset 100 percent of its business operations and even more momentous, 100 percent of its estimated carbon emissions for its first cruise in November 2009—that includes lodging for 2,000 passengers and all air travel.

The Cruises

But Sweet’s cherry on top is in the traveling, of course. The seven-day cruises are designed with on-shore excursions similar to other comparable cruises, though these extra activities are eco- and volunteer-based.

Sweet’s first cruise this November—with Norwegian Cruise Lines—offers volunteer projects like painting a mural in a children’s hospital wing, building a library at a primary school in Belize and picking up beach trash in Mexico. The community immersion is also a chance for lesbian travelers to engage with some cultures that are traditionally not as welcoming to gay and lesbian travelers, says Wentworth, adding that it’s an important opportunity for breaking down stereotypes and cultural barriers.

After several hours of helping local communities, travelers head back to the cruise ship and have a party, with live music, food and cocktails, celebrating the act of giving back.

“There’s just no high like giving in that way,” Wentworth says, and she says the port-to-port travel scheme of a cruise is a perfect opportunity to break down huge socio-environmental problems into bite-sized community service projects.

Sweet Highlights

Ultimately, Sweet’s vacations are just that: vacations. The cruises offers wide-ranging entertainment from acclaimed musicians and comedians, and on-board programs like Sweet Sparks (a networking discussion series). For a little economic relief, Sweet offers a no interest, no-fee 12-month payment plan; all packages are inclusive of taxes, port fees, gratuities, etc.

Image courtesy of Sweet

The first Sweet Caribbean cruise runs Nov. 8 to 15, 2009, and departs from New Orleans. Check out the three-day New Orleans pre-cruise package from Nov. 5 to 8, which includes a gay- and lesbian-heritage tour by historian Roberts Baston (Wentworth raves about him), a French Quarter tour, a cooking demonstration and a culminating wetlands restoration treeplanting project with Bayou Rebirth.

Other trips offered include the Sweet Kenyan Safari running in February 2010 and the Sweet Salmon River Rafting trip, which runs Aug. 16 to 21, 2009.

Cruises start at $1,099 per person. For more information, or to book a trip, call 877-793-3830 or go to Discoversweet.com.

If you’re interested in immersion travel and sustainable ecotourism, why not combine the two? Planeterra Foundation offers up to two-week-long voluntouring trips to more than 30 destinations around the world where volunteer travelers can assist local communities with projects like tending an organic farm in Ecuador or helping out at a daycare in Rio de Janeiro.

Project India, a 15-day trip in the state of Rajasthan, involves volunteering at Bal Prakash Center, which aims to eliminate child labor and provide kids with education and support. The cost of the Project India trip starts at $1,199 per person and includes accommodations, breakfasts, in-country transportation, guide services and entrance fees. Remaining 2009 departure dates: June 19, Sept. 11, Oct. 9, Nov. 13 and Dec. 18.

Other 2009 Planeterra projects include:

Project Costa Rica where you can assist with sea turtle conservation; Project Tanzania to help at a tourism-training institute on the spice island of Zanzibar; and Project Botswana to assist researchers at the Mashatu Game Reserve.

photo: Adventurous Wench

To see the full list of projects go to www.planeterra.org.

Imagine getting away from it all to travel in the South Pacific in eco-friendly style. A bicycle tour operator, Pedalers Pub and Grille, is offering an eight-night island-hopping bike and sail adventure in Tahiti. For $3,395 per person (excluding air travel to Tahiti) plus an additional $220 per person in port taxes, visitors can tour the islands of French Polynesia including Taha’a, Raiatea, Hauhine, Moorea and Bora Bora. The tour includes a seven-night stay on a ship (plus the first night’s stay at an eco-friendly hotel in Tahiti), airport transfers, daily meals, professional guides, and sightseeing and cultural activities.

Pedalers Pub and Grille has been organizing cycling tours to destinations in Asia, Alaska and the South Pacific since the 1980s and is offering environmentally friendly tours to help protect the threatened ecosystem of French Polynesia. The Bike and Sail Tour which begins and ends in Tahiti’s capital, Papeete, is set on a wind-powered clipper ship which can carry around 170 passengers.

During the trip, visitors (ranging from beginning cyclists to avid Lance Armstrong aficionados) peddle a total of 230 miles along designated routes that take them past local villages, historic centers, lagoons and the lush vegetation of French Polynesia. Trip highlights include visits to the Marae Taputaputea temple on the island of Raiatea and the markets of Maharepa in Moorea.

The next tour date is scheduled for June 20, 2009. For more information about the Bike and Sail Tour, visit www.pedalerspubandgrille.com.

A downtown parking lot in Houston, Texas, has been reborn as a 12-acre eco-centric park—Discovery Green. The parking lot hasn’t completely disappeared, but has been moved underground, so that Houston’s now only major downtown park can take center stage.

Features of the $122 million park include a lake, restaurants, dog runs, open lawns, an amphitheater, a children’s playground and public art works. Solar panels power the park offices; Houstonians bring their recycling on Recycling Saturdays; and groundwater saved from the garage is recycled for irrigation.

Discovery Green has become extremely popular—it’s estimated that almost 250,000 people visited the park from its opening day last April through the end of June.

Most events in the park are free, and include green markets, concerts, athletic activities (such as yoga and tai chi), as well as workshops and story time for kids.

So add Discovery Park to your list the next time you’re in Houston and let us know what you think!